It's that time of year again and I =
haven't even yet
finished installed the front AC in my Syncro Westy. Time to think =
of
HEAT!.
I have researched this =
topic also for the
last two winters. Here's what I'm currently =
considering. There
are a couple of European gas furnaces (Propex and Truma) but they are =
extremely
expensive and hard to get and they don't seem to put out enough heat for =
really
cold climates.
There are two small vented propane RV =
furnaces made
in the US that seem a good fit (size wise) into a vanagon and =
they
are available from 12,0000 -20000 BTU sizes which should heat a Vanagon =
quite
well. . I have seen a couple of them installed.
One is made by Atwood (aka =
Hydro-Flame).
Model is called the "Everest Star". The sell new for around $425 =
but you
can get one from an RV salvage yard for $200-$250. TIK I think one =
could
be fitted nicely into the little square cabinet area close to the =
floor, to
the left of the Westy fridge.
The other compact furnace is made by =
Suburban which
is well known in the RV world and they also make the furnace that is =
currently
used in the Eurovan Camper. I owned one of these campers for a =
while and
the furnace was the nicest feature of the van.
Suburban makes a model called the "NT" =
series which
is very compact---only about 9.5" square. Seems like it =
would also
fit in the same location mentioned above for the Hydro-Flame. =
Prices for
these are about the same reatial, but there's a dealer that sells them =
on eBay
for about $325.
Both models can be controlled by a
thermostat,---just like at home. Wonderful on cold mornings or =
arriving to
a cold campground late at night. Just turn the switch, set your =
temp and
forget it. You may need an extra propane tank for long =
camping trips
though.
Both of these heaters must be installed =
perpendicular to the outer wall of the van and therefore somewhere on =
the
cabinet side. The vent pipe must go straight to the outside of the =
van
with no bends. They cannot be mounted under the seat like the =
European
heaters with a vent that bends 90 degrees to reach the outside wall of =
the van.
Here's a useful link with pictures and =
sizes for
both furnaces:
I have not yet installed either of =
them, but I have
seen the Atwood (Hydro-Flame) model installed in a couple of Country =
Homes (non
Westy) camper conversions.